Guidelines for ordering Aplysia

Welcome to the National Resource for Aplysia at
UM's Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science

Your Contacts for questions regarding:

Orders or Billing: Colleen Stovall
305.421.4941		 aplysiaorder@rsmas...
Animal Care: Tom Capo
305.421.4941		 tcapo@rsmas...

Setting up an account:

Before you can order animals, we need to set up a customer account for you.  Please submit a “New Customer Application” and call us at 305.421.4941 with your payment information.

Payment:

Credit card:

We accept Visa and Mastercard. Please call with credit card information.

Please provide us with: name on card, billing address for card, card number, expiration date, secret code on the back of the card. Do not send credit card information via fax or email.

Purchase orders:

You must arrange any purchase orders through your purchasing department and contact us with the information, as soon as possible. You are responsible for ensuring that invoices are paid in a timely manner.

Check:

Payment is due within 30 days of receipt of invoice. Checks must be made payable to:
The University of Miami — MBF — Aplysia

Mail checks to:

National Resource of Aplysia
University of Miami Aplysia
4600 Rickenbacker Causeway
Miami, Florida  33149

Ordering:

  • To order, you must first establish a new account.
  • Once set up, please email your order to aplysiaorder@rsmas.miami.edu
  • We ship on Tuesdays, so the deadline is Monday before noon.  Priority goes to people who order early. (Most researchers order on Friday afternoon.)

Note: Any orders that come in past noon on Monday are subject to a $50 late order fee.    

Additional Costs:

  • In addition to the cost of the animals, you will be charged the cost of the Federal Express Next Day Air delivery and a handling fee of $13 (small) or $15 (large) depending on the size of the insulated box.
  • Any orders submitted past noon on Monday are subject to a $50 late order fee.
  • If you have a special order or are shipping internationally there will be additional charges for some or all of the following: pathology, documents, freight forwarding, air cargo and document preparation.

International shipping:

Because of advances in Next Day shipment technology, we have had great success shipping Aplysia to most countries within a two day time window.

  • International shipment must be paid before we can ship the animals.
  • We are not responsible for the quality or accuracy of licenses, permits or other international import documents provided to us by foreign research laboratories.
  • If your country does not accept import provided documents or permits, we do not refund pre-payments.
  • We recommend that your licenses and the permitting requirements be reviewed on an annual basis.
  • If you country does not require a license or permit to import Aplysia californica, we ask for a letter from the proper government agency stating that there are no restrictions on the importation. We cannot ship animals without the license (permit) or the letter.
  • Please check your country's holiday schedule when deciding on your shipping schedule. We are not responsible for animals held up in customs because of national holidays, strikes or other delays.

Shipping:

On Tuesdays we process orders, weigh and prepare the animals and pack them in bags of water with oxygen. Bags are packed in foam boxes with two pounds of ice and placed in cardboard boxes for shipping. The ice usually melts by the time you receive it. DO NOT put Aplysia in this water.

We are required to send your order via “Next Day Air”. You will usually receive your order the first thing on Wednesday morning. Your packing slip is enclosed in the box. Please save this to confirm your order.

Receiving your animals — Acclimation:

  • Prepare your tank in advance for the arrival of the Aplysia.
  • When animals arrive, take out the box but keep in bag.
  • Record the group numbers on the bags; it is the key to the history of your animals.
  • Place the unopened bag in your aquarium for one hour.
  • After an hour, open bag and add 100 ml of your tank's water to the water in the bag.
  • After 15 minutes add another 100 ml of your tank's water to the water in the bag.
  • After another 15 minutes release the animals into the tank.

Visit Handling Your Aplysia section for more information on how to care for your animals.